Washington - "And don't you dare call me proby!" the head of NCIS thundered at FBI senior agent Tobias C Fornell as specialist Navy cops demanded jurisdiction over today's carnage at DC's Navy Yard.
The complex is the scene of a mass shooting with a reported 12 people gunned down and at least four injured in what's been described as an NCIS classic from the popular US TV series.
Early intervention saw the Feds take charge of the crime scene which, as every NCIS fan knows, is the responsibility of the US Navy's specialist crime fighting unit.
Only last week the complex hosted an international conference of law enforcement chiefs attended by, amongst others - the head of Mossad - Eli David - father of NCIS Special agent Ziva.
The facility serves as the HQ of the Naval Sea Systems Command that designs, engineers, builds and maintains ships and submarines for the US Navy and is their oldest on-shore installation dating back to the 19th Century.
Early indications show the suspected gunman was killed in a shoot-out with cops but may have had at least two accomplices, now on the run, according to a brief statement issued by NCIS Director Vance.
NCIS team leader Leroy Jethro Gibbs is rumored to have dispatched top guns DiNozzo and David to hunt down and apprehend a pair of suspects disguised in camouflage fatigues spotted making a getaway in a dark Fort Taurus close to Pennsylvania Avenue.
And Special Agent Tim McGee has been drafted in to help NCIS forensics lab sleuth Abby Sciuto process the mass of crime scene evidence including ballistics fragments and toxicology tests.
Expect an update on this fast-moving episode shortly before midnight tonight.
